♦Chapter 106: Wrong Timings♦
[]Melissa's Perspective []
It was a peaceful afternoon, brimming with hazy sunlight as it peeked through the enormous casements, bringing light to the room. I shut myself inside with an opened book in hand, yet as though my reading has been disrupted by something very puzzling amid, I thoroughly closed it up.
Having a good look of the cover, it was one of the unread romance-themed novels that the Duchess left behind for me. These days, I couldn't bring myself to read straight, all because of the lingering attachments toward the person that paid for this book without asking myself for any sort of exchange, back in the day.
Whereas, I end up to be unnecessarily reminiscing about the tear-jerking, good old days, though it's as pathetic as it may seem.
But truth to be told, there were two other reasons related to this one other than the one that's described above.
Firstly, being reminded of the Duchess equally made me have recollections of her will regarding her son, also known as my half-brother, Lucian.
In the end, during the night where we've had arguments at the greenhouse, when supposedly, we should've eaten dinner together at ease; he couldn't pull off a second hit or more to the face or neck that I've left vulnerable to his eyes at the time.
To be honest, I was partly disappointed that his pride took over the situation, leading him to be incapable of grasping his vengeance by the means of my death, which I've openly expected highly from him.
However, half of myself felt relief. Perhaps, because I brightly thought that I could make it through the situation without struggling an injury, further than the blow that I took from my brother. But such feelings could've also dwelled from my responsibility, from the fact that I took upon the Duchess' request to take good care of Lucian in her stead.
After all, though it might've been twist created by coincidence, I somehow managed to prevent his hands from being stained with another's blood, just because of ugly, unfulfilled desires such as revenge. If the Duchess were to see that kind of scene, she probably wouldn't have favored it, specially because she had a complex relative to the subject.
For she was a person, experienced of murder, no matter it was something forced for her to do.
That would be enough to explain how she wouldn't like her beloved child to grow up like a sinful criminal like her.
Going back to the main topic, after my last meeting with Lucian, I have yet to meet or talk with him at all, since then. Nevertheless, I didn't really know what would be the right word of choice to make up with our conflict that night, thus I could only be reassured of the fact that the two of us haven't crossed paths via coincidence yet, as of late.
"......"
*Flump!*
I silently held out the book at the front with both hands, and intentionally bumped myself down the soft-textured, long sofa that I sat onto till a second ago.
Staring at it, I grasped the feeling that I kind of bored myself by reading the typical series of events that would be read in every novel of the genre, when it was supposed to be something I preferred all this time.
That's right. That was the last reason to why I came to the result of pausing the progress of my reading.
I dunno why, but it's becoming uninteresting...... I straightforwardly proclaimed in a natural tone, inside my mind.
It was then that I helplessly carried out a series of suspicious-looking movements, taking a peek at a certain book, buried and hidden below another light, romance-themed novel, out of reflex.
I swiftly moved my body back up in a sitting posture and placed down the work that I stopped reading on the same table. Then, shifting my gaze to where I kept peeking at previously, I swallowed a gulp with a cold sweat running down the side of my face.
Slowly, I spread out my stiffened arms and hands toward it, wearing the kind of vibe of a person that was about to do something rather undesirable.
Spirals began to swirl around my eyes, hesitant of whether or not I should surrender to this pure, intensifying curiosity of mine.
Thereafter, in a blink of an eye, I found myself carrying the book with utmost care and caution, within the grasp of my hands.
'Night, Like the Wilderness.'
The imprinted title mentioned as such, as though it was already trying to point out its contents with small hints from the cover, itself.
It might've been a splendidly befitting way to describe the novel's whole, but the effort could be needless for it was one of the rules that an R18 warning should be properly marked at a corner or two, on a work's cover, if necessary.
My body was stuck in an awkward, edgy function of movements meanwhile I gradually flipped to the page where lied, the prologue. And there, the first experience of having read a novel tagged of the smut that the Duchess preferred, rushed into me.
It only took a mere second for my cheeks to go beet red before the texts that were reflected into my eyes.
The story has just begun, and yet the scene that was described already went inside that kind of event. While the unnecessary groaning speeches already attacked my weak heart more than enough, the detailed definitions of the most vulgar parts were worth of my fainting aspect.
The more I poked my nose into the next sentences, the more extreme the occurrences became, weighing a heavier guilt at the bottom of my chest.
It was the same feeling as when you saw something you shouldn't have seen, no matter the fact that it was sort of an undeniable truth that must be known at a precise moment. To add up, contradicting thoughts like whether or not I should stop reading at this point, regardless of the overwhelming amount of interest toward something that I've already started with, kept pressuring me whilst it wasn't too late as of yet.
But, never did I know back then that a storm would make its way to me, during this bad timing.
*knock*knock*
Someone suddenly knocked the door to thankfully(?) end this hellish involvement.
I was so shocked by this sudden happening to the point that I couldn't save myself from clumsily dropping the book on the floor, with a scream that even reached the ears of the person that tried to enter from the door.
"Lady Melissa?!!", I quickly noticed from the individual's tone that he was Aiden in actuality. But when I attempted to pick the novel up again so I could hide it away before the worried little bodyguard could go inside the room to check on my status, I've made a heavy failure by twisting my ankle by accident as I was being too rash and hasty.
"Eh...?", I was left in confusion by the zooming view of the floor until-
*CRASH!!*
I fell and grazed my left elbow and chin down the flat surface, painfully.
The juvenile that heard this impassioned disturbance from where he stood, opened the door in an instant, and dashed until he reached his master's(my) side to be of her assistance.
"What happened, milady? Can you stand?!", he continuously questioned with great concern and supported me when I carefully tried to stand back up.
I was doing what I could to keep him preoccupied so he wouldn't see the book that openly exposed itself right down there, or so it was supposed to be...
However, it didn't go as planned. After all, this guy-
He noticed its presence while giving me a helping hand, at the same time!
"Lady Melissa, would you mind if I ask you about something right now?
I flinched, startled by the phrase that I perceived, especially because the person stood still as he stared at the object down the floor for a very long time.
"W-what might that be...?", I stuttered, softly looking away.
"When a written text says 'R18', it's that 'R18', isn't that right?"
"W-well, maybe-?"
"And if I remember correctly, Lady Melissa is a twelve-year-old minor, no?", the black-haired juvenile suddenly interrupted with a greater amount of pressure mixed in his words.
"T-that is correct...", my sweat multiplied as I answered and continued,
"U-umm... you're not angry or anything, right? You're scaring me a bit, though...?"
Aiden finally met my gaze the moment I spoke of the question, and briefly sighed before he could give me a reply.
"Ahem!", he cleared his throat to straighten himself up.
"Of course, I'm not one to reprimand about something like this, milady. However, I do believe that novels like those should be read with propriety, according to the recommended age."
The truth is I'm a mentally grown woman over my twenties, who hasn't crossed the thought of preying onto stories like those in my previous life, and only possesses a younger vessel on the surface presently.
Like the hell I could explain my excuses to him that way. In no doubt, he'd think that I was just making up terrible lies, in order to get past the caution or advice that he gave me.
I gave in without reservations and bowed my head to the little bodyguard's presence, as if he was of a superior standing than mine.
"I apologize. I'll reflect onto my actions for the better."
"Ahhh, please don't lower your head to me, lady Melissa...!!", he panicked with a flustered manner of speech, troubled in cases where someone as great as those prideful nobles would suddenly appear and witness this absurd scene.
For example-
A young master from a humble ducal household, related by blood to the esteemed Imperial Family.
It was then the two of us abruptly got wind of something like a stuffed paper bag falling into the floor, coming from the entrance part of my room.
Aiden and I quickly shifted our heads, facing the source of the sound for a quick confirmation.
"Why is my sister bowing in front of a lowly son of a baron like you?"
Before we knew it, the kind of situation that the black-haired young man beside me sincerely wished to avoid the most, has made its way to our direction, in a flash.
My half-brother, Lucian has come to visit my place, disregarding formalities to be made such as a prior notice.
It was an unavoidable situation that I couldn't have foresaw at that time. Just like how fearful and bothersome I thought it could've become, facing events which were far different from the future that I've known of...
Were truly, rather tiring and fearsome for me to handle.